Tbh - it doesn't look good because pattern ends abruptly. Not clear if you're doing a new build or custom renovation. If the latter you should have been able to select the slabs and request pattern matching. If a new home build, builders rarely allow that.

Thanks for reply. We are doing a renovation, I had bought two bookmarked pieces but never spoke to the stonemason myself, I went through the builder and never had the conversation but assumed that a professional stonemason would know about bookmatching.

First of all, the builder and stonemason should have k own better than to try to pass that off as acceptable. The seam is fully visible. It should never occur in the middle of the counter. If you bought bookmatched stone, then it should look like that one the counter. They need to redo this at no cost to you

Better picture please.

@Joseph Corlett, LLC I’ve added another photo not sure if thats better or not, you can see the seam to the left of the sink

Quite awful. First mistake?

"Assume" ..........you assume NOTHING.

Second mistake? Seam is best at the MIDDLE of the sink. The least noticeable spot for a seam.

We have no idea the size of the kitchen, or anything else beyond the pics.

Go ahead and beat on me, people.

You assume NOTHING. About anything. With any builder, any contractor, any fabricator, Period.

Just remember what three letters appear first/consecutively in the assume word. Welcome to one more in the many thousand posts of "unhappy with seam" threads located here on this site.

Agreed @JAN MOYER lesson learnt the hard way about assumptions. I guess the many unhappy seam threads point to many first time renovators like myself! Now I know better, hindsight is a king.

It's painful . Brutal truth is always that. Sorry. WAH.

It is hard to know what you DON'T know until it's too late. If a thing is important to you? And by that I mean nearly ANY thing? You ask. You verify. . You get it in writing, with a drawing. The only thing that counts in reno or build? Ink,,,,and signatures.

The fabricator should have told you about the best placement for seams, and if he was anything like the guy I used, insisted on bookmatched for a long seam. My guy realized that a happy client is important along with his reputation , Stories and pictures about half assed work make the rounds much quicker that a beautiful job. You pay for quality, and experience.

So why is the sink so off center from the window? What does the rest look like?

@User

Additional photos for context

"Should have told You"......................riiiiight.

Shoulda woulda coulda. A builder is there to make money. Unless the highest end and custom? Unless you have a designer working on your behalf? Unless, unless, unless.........

If it is in any way important to you? .................as above. Do not assume.

Is this unpleasant truth? Yes. Has it always been so? Yes.

But it is MORE true as of now. There is not one area in this business, where people are not scrambling for competent help. The fabricators of stone, the owner of the upholstery shop, the electrical business. Every.. single. area.

REMODEL AND BUILD is not for the faint of heart in the best of times. These are definitely not the best of times.

Yes Jan, he should have told her, Its a remodel on her home, not some random build. Ill agree tho, he was incompetent

​Your outlets appear to have the same reaction we are. Jan is right. I assumed things when our new kitchen was being built. Like the electrician would naturally vent the oven hood to the outside because the stove was on an outside wall. Nope! Took the easy way. Never occurred to me to ask. My mistake. A long cutting board strategically placed will cover the seam if it can't be corrected.  Your window sill is lovely. Draws the eye away from it some.

M Ritz......... I SHOULD be filthy rich, and I am not.

It doesn't change, no matter what. It isn't about should, unless the "should" applies to the end user to whom the issue is important. To rely on who SHOULD do something? Know something? You rely on you. To ask, to check, to verify.

There is no other "should" just as there is no "just" do this! in design. Eliminate both words from your vocabulary is the best advice you will ever get. That seems to suck rocks? Well yeah.........it does. Do it or rue it.

I had bought two bookmarked pieces

I suspect that you could have done with a third slab given that you used the stone for the backsplash too. If you bought a total of only 2 pieces, quite possibly (or probably) the fabricator concentrated on the more noticeable splash area and had to make do with what was left over for the counters. That splash burned through a lot of stone and looks well done.

Another thought for anyone with a potential similar problem...

I wonder if the stone needed for the bay window had been removed from the equation...and made available for the counters during templating...if that would have yielded a better result?

In the real world, almost certainly that window stool is going to be mostly covered up with plants anyway. Maybe use a tile color matched to the granite? Formica? Corian remanent? Painted PVC? IF this would get you better seam matches on the counters or save having to buy another slab.

ETA: Looking at the photos again, I would really upset about the stone job on the island. Did you ask for waterfall ends? Or just stone end panels?

It's clear from the photos that this is a high end remodel and it's unfortunate that you weren't better advised on how many slabs of that gorgeous stone you needed to bookmatch the whole job. No matter how many projects I do, I find it impossible to know everything I need to know ahead of time and I'm always disappointed with a few things as a result. Ugh! Your kitchen is beautiful and I'm sure you'll learn to live with the mismatched counter but sheesh! That's painful!

@ci_lantro for the island bench the builder aaked if it should be mitred or shadowline and ir was recommended to go with shadowline so thats what we agreed on. Not sure if thar answers your question?

@cheri127 i was initially told i needed two but the fabricator requested a third slab, so i had three in total. i’ve requested to meet with him and the builder to find out how much is left over.

I am a fabricator. A competent fab shop would review all the issues, including the ones the customer doesn't know to ask about BEFORE any stone is cut. This is why a person contemplating new countertops should take the time to review the available shop and prioritize competence over price.

Ugh I am sorry this happened - it is hard to know what to worry about when we go through things the first time!

The stone & kitchen are lovely - right now everything seems to stick out because the room is not done (if it were me, I would likely treat myself to a gorgeous cutting board to soften the transition in that spot) but the huge window is the star of that wall, so I think seam will recede in your mind over time -

Vonita--Shadow line explains it then. And the oblique angle of the island in the photo exaggerates it some, too, I suppose.

horrible match up. the grain isn't even going the same way.

I won't beat a dead horse.

what is going on w/this island where the top meets the side? is this complete?

what's with the gap?

Under no circumstances should you ever see a board proping up a sink as in your picture. If sinks are adhered in place, such as with Black Mamba, a bar clamp is run through a 2x4 and through the drain. If the sink is strapped, it is ready for immediate use, no board required.

Check as to what adhesive was used and any mechanical fasteners please.

I still haven't seen enough quality pictures to judge the quality of the seam.

Sorry to Vonita for going OT, but John Corlett, my own fabricator said they will be using Black Mamba for installing the sink, but I was wondering - doesn’t that make it near impossible to (if desired or needed) change out the sink at some future point?

"I was wondering - doesn’t that make it near impossible to (if desired or needed) change out the sink at some future point?"

I've never had to remove a sink that's been adhered with Black Mamba. I have, however, broken a countertop when removing a composite sink that had been epoxied in place. A forgiving color, movement, particulates, and my excellent customer selection skills saved the day probably more than my technical skills.

I doubt the Mamba is any match for a multi-tool. Another reason to silicone and strap sinks; easy change-outs.

Where are the outlets on that island?

@Beth H. :the gap is a ahadowline edge which we discussed beforehand through the builder.

@Joseph Corlett, LLC re: Check as to what adhesive was used and any mechanical fasteners please

i will investigate thanks.

ok. don't think I've seen that. any reason why you didn't want a nice waterfall?

and where are your outlets on the island? should be one on both sides

@Beth H. :is this what you mean? we have one on the side facing the window and another one underneath the seating ledge at the back so its not in view when you first enter the kitchen.

Also, the shadowline edging was recommended by the fabricator and also from the research i did.

“I doubt the Mamba is any match for a multi-tool. Another reason to silicone and strap sinks; easy change-outs.”

Yes, I agree and I’m quite annoyed with my fabricator. They gave me a story line about how they started using Black Mamba two years ago and now they won’t use anything else. I asked if they would use silicone and a harness if I asked them to and they said no. They would warrant their work under those terms. I even ask

Tony:

I'd have them delete the sink installation from the contract.

Hmm, I hadn’t thought of that. Is it possible to do that but still have them do the cutout?